Moments In Time
by P2tbAnimeGirl
Summary: After her final battle with Madara, Konan witnesses her life flash before her eyes. While Yahiko loved Konan, Nagato loved her too. But who did she really choose in the end? After all, when you die it's only the parts that matter that flash before your eyes.
1. Prologue

**Warnings:** A little bit of language, character death, and bloody fight scenes.

**Disclaimer:** Naruto & Naruto Shippuuden © Masashi Kishimoto, Shonen Jump, Studio Pierrot, TV Tokyo, & Shueisha. Lyrics used in later chapters are taken from the song Imaginary by Evanescence. All materials used belong to their rightful owners and I do not profit from this.

Prologue

Icy waters seemed to be pulling her closer into their embrace. She was left floating there as her blood continued to mingle with these waters.

The last effects of Madara's genjutsu was beginning to fade and she knew her life was coming to its end. But she was accepting of her fate. She had done all she was capable of doing. At least she had managed to rob Madara of one of his eyes and his arm.

It wouldn't be long now, she would soon see them again. Yahiko and Nagato, even Jiraiya-sensei.

Actually, she wasn't sure if the genjutsu was still messing with her, but in sudden succession memories of times past flashed before her eyes in great detail.


	2. Drizzle

_I linger in the doorway  
Of alarm clock screaming  
Monsters calling my name_  
~_**Imaginary – Evanescence**_

Chapter 01: Drizzle

Huddled in the far corner of the family closet, sat a small child. Her hands furiously covered her mouth to mask her heavy breathing and any uncontrollable sobs. Though she was no longer crying by this point, the trails of her earlier tears were clear on her dirt caked face. And try as she may, she could not stop her uncontrollable shaking.

'Don't let them find me,' she silently begged to any higher being. She knew the strangers were still here, in her house, and searching for anything that might be useful to their cause. The closet had seemed like a good spot to hide at the time, but now she knew it was only a matter of time before they came searching in her hiding spot.

She knew the intruders were a neighboring country's ninja solders. She knew from experience that the closet door creaked when opened. She dared not abandon her hiding spot for this reason, because she would be an easy target then. Plus she had not yet gathered to courage to so much as try.

"Anything in the cupboards?," She heard a man's distinct voice call out from somewhere in the house. His harsh voice made her flinch for it had just suddenly broken the tense silence.

"Nothing, these people have more cobwebs than food." A second man yelled in response, his voice sounding from the not so distant kitchen.

"Figures. Just look at the state they're in; wearing filthy rags like that and you can count the ribs on that one. There was only one mattress in their bedroom and just about nothing else. It's another dirt poor rat's nest, just like the others. This has been a waste of time." The first voice replied, now sounding as close as the other man had.

"What should we do with the bodies?" The second asked.

"Leave 'em. They're not worth the effort." The fist replied.

"Seems a shame to just leave them though."

"It's raining again, just like it always does in this godforsaken country. If you want to kill yourself trying to dig muddy graves for these two, knock yourself out. It isn't worth it in my opinion."

And then there was silence. Long and harsh silence as the child huddled in the closet just sat there shaking in the suffocating darkness. It took her what felt like an eternity to gather the courage to leave her hiding spot now that she thought the intruders were gone.

The sight that greeted her in the hallway would forever scar her.

Tossed about like ragdolls and laying in polls of deep crimson liquid were two barely middle aged adults. Their faces no longer held the familiar kind and compassionate looks they had in life. Her mother's eyes were glazed and blank, looking out into oblivion. This was no longer her happy smiling family. This would be the image of her parents that would haunt her nightmares for years to come.

And for the first and only time since this hellish nightmare had begun, the little girl let out a cry that was a mix of horror and great sorrow into the drizzling afternoon.


	3. Rain

_Let me stay  
Where the wind will whisper to me  
Where the raindrops, as they're falling, tell a story  
__**~Imaginary – Evanescence**_

Chapter 02: Rain

It was only days after their deaths and the girl's thoughts were plagued with worry and doubt in herself.

The strangers had been correct about digging graves in the fresh mud. So the girl settled on the idea of dragging her parents out into the tiny ditch she had managed to make after hours of trying and covering them with one of the only blankets in the house. From there she tossed mud on top of the blanket, covering them up to the best of her ability.

The girl just couldn't bring herself to just leaver her parents laying on the floor as their murderers had. But now that she had finished her task, she went to leave her family home behind her. She wanted to be gone before the landlady arrived and sent her off to the village orphanage. She had heard too many horror stories about what happened to the children there; abuse and neglect being reoccurring themes.

With her Mother's oversized yellow rain coat draped around her, she walked away to a place unknown to her.

Now, as she sat under a rocky overpass, with her knees drawn up to her chest for warmth, she wondered if she had made the right choice. She wondered if she should've stayed and gone to the orphanage instead. Would facing possible abuse at the hands of the orphanage be better than being where she was now? Alone, cold, wet, tired, and hungry? Especially hungry.

She was reminded of her growing hunger as her stomach let out a low rumble. Though se was use to hunger pains, she knew that she would need to eat eventually. The problem was that she had nothing to eat and had no money to get anything to calm the grumbling pains within her that begged for nourishment.

"You okay?" A voice asked. Though the voice hadn't sounded threatening, the girl still jumped in fear from it. She quickly scanned her surroundings, looking for the person the voice belonged to. "Up here!" The voice spoke again.

Ducking her head out of the small overpass and into the rain, she looked up to see a small flaming haired boy who didn't appear to be much older than herself.

"How did you find me?" She asked. Thankful it had been this boy who had spotted her hiding spot instead of an enemy ninja.

"Your yellow rain jacket was reflected in the puddles around you." The boy replied as he began to climb down the rocks on the hill. The first licks of fear began to reach into her thoughts; she couldn't abandon the coat. She couldn't afford to, but she also couldn't afford to let the coat bring unwanted attention to her either. So she would need to find some sort of solution to its reflective color.

"You don't talk much, do you?" The boy asked with a smile, now being eye level with her. For a moment she was stunned, even though the dark rainy sky she could see the sun reflected in his smile.

She was about to reply when her stomach let out a loud grumble. "Hungry? Me too, wanna grab something? We aren't too far from the nearest village." The boy replied, the radiant smile still on his face.

The girl found herself following at the promise of food. And the boy had been right, the village wasn't too far and it seemed to be doing far better than hers had been. Stands of fruit and fresh baked bread stood along the streets. But there was still one problem. She didn't have any money, and judging by the looks of the boy, she highly doubted that he had any either. So how were they going to get the food?

"See that guy there? The one with the bread table? Go talk to him and keep him focused on you." The boy instructed, his voice a mere whisper in her ear.

"What?"

"Just do it. Come on, trust me." He replied, not leaving her time to answer as he walked off ahead of her. And so she found herself approaching the man with the bread table.

"Oh no, we don't serve your kind. I don't give freebees! Now scram!" The man barked, waving a rolled up newspaper at her before she had even said a word.

"Hey! I can pay! My mom told me to pick up bread on my way home!" She cried back, finding that the lie came to her with ease. And though her guilt tugged at her, the thought of food kept her going.

The salesman asked several more questions. 'Who is your mom?', 'Where do you live?,' and 'How come I've never seen you before'. With each question she found it harder to keep hold of her lie. Until there was a huge crash and the world around her erupted in utter chaos. It took her a moment of recovery to realize that someone had flipped the table, sending loafs of bread flying into the air.

"RUN!" The orange haired boy shouted as he ran past her, several loafs in his hands. Instinct took over and she obeyed. Running through the muddy streets as the salesman chased them, shouting all kinds of profanity at them. And the two didn't stop running until they reached the small underpass on the outskirts of the village.

Gasping for breath, the girl slumped forward with her hands on her knees. Her lungs burned inside her chest. The boy looked similar; breathing heavily with his back against the wall and his arms full with the several loafs of bread. They took one look at each other and started to laugh.

"That was awesome!" The boy said, giving her that amazing simile once more.

"Y-yeah!" She replied.

"Here's your share," the boy said, holding out a loaf of bread.

"Thanks," she breathed as she took the bread and bit into it in a very unladylike manner that would've made her mother's brow scrunch. What she had mistaken as fresh brad was actually pretty stale, but with her hunger she could've cared less. It was the best and only meal she had in days.

"We made a pretty good team back there." The boy said, already halfway through his first loaf.

"Yeah," She replied with her mouth full.

"I'm Yahiko," the boy introduced.

"I'm Konan," the girl replied. And for the first time in many days, she smiled through the rain.


	4. Sun Shower

In my field of paper flowers  
And candy clouds of lullaby  
**~Imaginary – Evanescence**

Chapter 03: Sun shower

"Here, have some soup." Konan said, a bowl of steaming broth and aged vegetables in her outstretched hands.

"Thanks." Nagato muttered before taking the bowl from her.

"And some bread for Chibi!" She spoke softly as she placed the small bit of bread on the floor in front of the happy puppy.

Days had passed since she found him, the boy with the dog. Though he had originally looked frail and sickly, the steady intake of food was starting to revive him.

Konan couldn't explain the feeling that had suddenly come over her when she saw him lying in the street that day. She knew that she couldn't bring herself to just walk past as so many others had. She had been in the exact same spot as that boy before she met Yahiko after all. In fact if it wasn't for Yahiko she'd still be cold, alone, and starving.

Weeks had passed since her meeting with Yahiko and a friendship that was forged over stolen bread had lasted. She knew Yahiko well enough to know that he wasn't overly thrilled with the arrival of the two extra mouths to feed. But she also knew that he wasn't entirely upset either. The new boy, Nagato, brought something unique to their little group. He was as shy and sensitive as Yahiko was bold and outgoing. Nagato was quiet while Yahiko was loud. They were opposites, but their friendship worked. Shopkeepers focused on small and withdrawn Nagato, making it easy for Yahiko to do his work. And Chibi always brightened up their days. Overall, Konan was happy to have more friends.

Yahiko held his plate out in front of Nagato. "You do the dishes tonight."

"Uh, sure." Nagato replied, taking the dish from Yahiko's outstretched hand.

"Come on Yahiko. Don't boss him around like that." Konan chastised with a small but serious pout on her features. Chibi barked in agreement with her.

"He needs to do work too. I stole, you cooked, so he cleans. It's that simple." Yahiko replied, flashing her a smile. Instantly her features softened, but her thoughts on the matter didn't.

"You could've been nicer about it."

"It's okay Konan." Nagato spoke up. Chibi ran off to his owners side at the sound of his voice; barking and running around his ankles.

Konan didn't continue to press the matter, but she did flash Yahiko a look that conveyed the rest of her thoughts to the orange haired boy. Yahiko smiled again in response.

"Oh wait! I forgot! Here! I found this!" Yahiko exclaimed suddenly. He had stuck his hand in his pocket and dug around before producing a small object in his hand.

Konan took the object from his outstretched hand with care. On closer inspection, she could see that it was a small origami flower.

"I think it's called a tulip or something." Yahiko explained.

"Cool!" Konan replied. Her interests were now absorbed in the flower. Amegakure was one of the few villages that didn't produce flowers. The nonstop rain of the land drowned them and ruined the ones that were foolishly imported. If you wanted flowers, great care, resources and energy had to be spent in assuring their survival.

She unraveled and refolded the small paper flower in various steps. Studying and memorizing the ways in which the paper had to be folded. She was fascinated by the delicate work that had been spent on the paper. She became determined to master its art.

"Chibi! Wait!" Nagato suddenly called as the small dog went running for the entrance of the cave. Konan and Yahiko looked up at the running dog as well.

Outside, though it still raining, the clouds had parted and warm rays of light were shining through. It was a sun shower, a very rare occurrence in Amegakure.

At the sight of the sun in the light rain, Konan ran outside right after Chibi. Leaving her delicate paper flower behind on the small slightly damp table.

"Come on!" Konan called to her friends as she chased Chibi outside. The two boys did not need convincing, they followed eagerly.

Normally they would have exercised more caution when leaving the cave, but childish excitement overruled their judgment. They came running out into the open without a second thought, leaving their caution flapping in the wind.

The weather was truly beautiful. Puffy white clouds that were nothing like the usual gloomy gray filled the skies. A light drizzle of rain filled the air between the ground and the sky, but it wasn't as bone chilling as the usual steady rain was. And the sun that slipped through the clouds was actually warm.

The three chased each other while laughing, smiles visible on their faces and their eyes as bright as the glistening rays. The change in weather had brought out a side of them they didn't normally get to see. The joy and utter bliss of being a child.

Eventually Konan needed to stop running to catch her breath, but her smile didn't fade. After a couple of breaths she looked back at her friends. The boys still running and laughing as they chased the small dog, who's happy barking mixed with their laughter.

Moments like these were rare indeed. Moments where they didn't have to shoulder the burden of the world. Times when they could still be children. Konan had had these rare moments before, but not with her new friends. The feeling of being carefree and innocent, if only for a moment, was something to be cherished.

If only they could stay that way forever in the blissful sun shower.


	5. Cloudy

_I lie inside myself for hours  
__And watch my purple sky fly over me (flowers)_

~_**Imaginary – Evanescence**_

Chapter 04: Cloudy

It was late in the evening and the last bits of light shone through the land. The rain had stopped but a light mist continued to spray the land. The gray overcast foretold that the usual weather would eventually kick up again soon. It was a common misty sunset.

Konan walked several feet behind her friends. None of them spoke though. It was times like these when she missed Chibi the most; the puppy usually got them talking after miserable a day. And today had defiantly gone differently than she had expected.

For starters, she had sensei now. She didn't have any desires of learning ninjutsu, but her friends did. And since she did not wish to be separated from them she agreed to the training. She also saw no point in letting them learn while she sat on the sidelines either. She had an opportunity after all and she couldn't rely on them forever.

The whole ordeal had been odd and it started with Yahiko asking for food. Foreigners, depending on which village they were from, usually handed out food. Nagato had been against asking, recognizing the ninja as being from the Leaf. But Yahiko asked anyway. They did give the three of them food, which Nagato and Konan both thought was enough.

But Yahiko decided to follow them. And where he went, Konan went and Nagato followed as well. Konan thought they were just thanking them for the food.

When they finally acknowledged them, Yahiko asked them to become their teachers. The shinobi seemed surprised, two seemed angry even. One of them threatened to kill them. But Master Jiraiya didn't let him and offered to be their teacher. He took them to his hideout, a real structured building. It was dry and warm, unlike the old cave they had lived in.

Everything was great until the argument broke out over dinner.

Yahiko yelled at Nagato for crying again. Nagato was sensitive and prone to tears. Yahiko had put up a wall, deciding that tears were weakness.

He also discussed his dream. And though they two, Konan and Nagato, had heard it many times before, he seemed angrier. A different type of determination came out in him. There was no trace of the sun in his smile or eyes when he talked about his dream.

It was almost like he became a different person.

And right now, during their evening walk, Konan wondered if this would become a permanent change in him. She hoped not.

Suddenly a hand grasped her shoulder, pulling her back and catching her off balance. Konan looked up behind her and saw an older ninja with Iwagakure rocks on his forehead protector. His grip was harsh and strong, painful even.

"Do you brats have any money?" He asked, his other hand gripping the sword on his back.

"N-..n-…no!" Konan stuttered, eyes wide. The same feeling of terror from that day in the closet returned. A paralyzing terror that sat right in her core.

"Leave her alone!" Yahiko shouted at the ninja. The man looked up from her to Yahiko, a smirk crossing his face.

"Troublesome brats need to be dealt with." He removed his iron grip on Konan's shoulder, giving her a shove, and drew his sword.

"NO!" Nagato shouted. His bangs moved from his face, exposing his eyes. They were unnatural looking, a ripple pattern as gray as the clouds above.

Konan quickly found the courage to move again. The courage to run away. '_I needed to get Master Jiraiya_,' she thought frantically as she ran, feet splashing in the mud while Yahiko shouted behind her.

She ran fast, faster than she normally could. Her lungs burned but she pushed on. Her friends needed her to get help as quickly as possible.

They were all lucky that they had only gone down the road.

"Master Jiraiya hurry! Yahiko and Nagato are in trouble!" She shouted as she burst through the door.

Jiraiya was on his feet in seconds. "Lead the way Konan!"

And then she was running again, Jiraiya following close behind.

By the time they finally arrived, Konan instantly knew that something big had happened. Both Yahiko and Nagato sat in the mud as the rain just started to pick up again. The enemy ninja, however, lay dead in a puddle of mixed mud and blood. Konan tried her best not to look.

"I brought master Jiraiya!" She called as she came running closer. Master Jiraiya ran ahead of her at this point, racing over to Yahiko.

While Yahiko explained what had happened to master Jiraiya, Konan focused on Nagato. He sat with his back hunched, his hands digging into the fresh mud, and his breathing heavy as he stared at the carnage of the enemy ninja.

"Nagato…" Konan whispered softly, placing her hand gently on his shoulder.

"I... I… I…" Nagato stuttered, trying to find the words. She caught another look at his eyes, but could see that they were afraid. A stunning kind of fear was reflected in them. She knew he was still her friend deep down, regardless of his eyes.

"Shush." She soothed as she tried to help him to his feet. Pulling his arm over her shoulder she began to support him as they walked.

Today was the first time she noticed the change in her friends. Their image of innocence now clouded.


End file.
